The present invention relates to camera back lid opening apparatus suitable for, in particular, drop-in loaded cameras.
In axially loaded cameras or drop-in loaded cameras, a patrone containing a coiled film strip with a film leader previously withdrawn therefrom is inserted endwise, i.e., axially into a film supply chamber of the camera body. The film supply chamber is opened at the bottom of the camera by opening a camera back lid having a rim adapted to overlap the bottom of the camera body. When the back lid is opened through a predetermined angle sufficient to insert the film patrone into the bottom opening to the film supply chamber, there is provided a slot at the bottom of the camera between the rim of the back lid and the camera body for threading the film leader into a path between the film supply and a film take-up chamber when inserting the patrone into the bottom opening to the film supply chamber.
When closing the back lid, the rim of the back lid closes the bottom opening and the threading slot and, at the same time, the film along the path is pressed against an exposure frame and is held in a fixed position in the axial direction of a taking lens of the camera by a pressure plate well known per se. The complete closing of the back lid causes an automatic film winding mechanism to start so as to wind the film leader around a take-up spool disposed in the film take-up chamber. This done, the camera is ready for an exposure. After all the exposures have been made and the film has been rewound into the patrone in a well known manner, the back lid is opened for allowing the patrone to be taken out through the bottom opening.
In a drop-in loaded camera, as described above, the back lid is usually prevented from opening more than a predetermined angle sufficient to provide the threading slot; however, it can be adapted to open more fully for easy access to interior mechanisms of the camera for inspection and repair.
To limit the opening of the back lid, it is necessary to provide, in a drop-in loaded camera, spring means for urging the back lid to open and stop means for holding the back lid opened at the predetermined angle against the spring means. In addition to these means, it is also necessary to provide means for disabling the stop means in order to allow the full opening of the back lid beyond the predetermined angle, for access to the interior mechanisms of the camera. The provision of such means makes the back lid opening mechanism complicated and requires an increased number of parts, which is obviously disadvantageous. Furthermore, from an operational point of view, it is troublesome to disable the stop means each time when opening fully the back lid.